The Accident
by memoire-blanche
Summary: Set several months after season 4. Jeremie has an accident. How will Aelita cope with it? Story completed.
1. Chapter 1

The Accident

Chapter 1

The steel door of the hospital elevator opened silently as it stopped on the floor.

A crowd of people wearing coats and overalls went out and rushed to work, each in their direction. The last to leave the cabin was a threesome of casually dressed guests with the company of an elderly female doctor. As they felt the elevator stop beneath their feet, the three left the elevator and rushed to the end of the corridor. A blond-haired, tall man walked right next to the doctor; arm in arm with him walked his wife, who was a short, petite woman in glasses.

Aelita walked close behind the adults, gaping absentmindedly at the floor. As she was lost in her thoughts, she did not pay much attention to what was going on around her. She even accidentally collided with a stout man, who was walking in opposite direction. Being brutally pushed back into reality, she apologized silently and continued walking and contemplating her footsteps, the only thing she could focus her attention on.

She felt like she woke up when, after taking numerous turns and corridors, they finally arrived at their destination. She saw the petite woman they had been walking with hiding her face with her hands. Hardly restraining from bursting into tears, she turned to her husband. Just as shocked than her, the man put his arm around her and together they stood in front of a large window.  
Behind the glass, in a separated room of the intensive care unit and surrounded by several machines which were monitoring the life functions, put to numerous drips supplying unknown substances into the veins, with an oxygen mask on his face, laid their only son.  
"Oh, Jeremie...", whispered Aelita to herself.

Not paying much attention to the adults, she moved closer to the window and reached her hand towards the glass, as if she wanted to touch the boy in spite of it. She pulled back as she felt the cold and smooth surface.  
Jeremie laid unconscious on the bed; the left arm was immobilized. His face, not hidden behind the glasses, was pale and expressed no emotion. To tell the truth, the only visible signs of life were series of muffled sounds and graphs on the screens, let out by the machinery that stood around his bed.  
As Aelita realized in how poor a shape he was in, her eyes filled with tears. Even though he was a fifteen year old young man who was a half head taller than her, among all that medical equipment, he seemed as fragile and vulnerable as a child who would die without care and protection. It was so hard for her to believe that merely twenty-four hours ago he talked to her and her friends, safe and sound. She still had fresh memories of the drama she had been a witness to.

_She was walking with Odd, Jeremie and Ulrich, as well as the rest of her class, in an organized column they walked in whenever the teachers took them on a field trip. Supervised by Jim and Mrs. Hertz, they were walking to the nearby woods. It was sunny and warm morning, the weather was perfect for field trips like this one. Everybody was excited to have class in the open air since they did not get that opportunity too often. _

_Absorbed with the conversation with the boys, Aelita did not pay attention to the traffic. She heard Jim calling some people to order for stepping off the sidewalk, but she shrugged it off. _

_Then she heard a loud roar of an approaching car, coming from a certain distance. _

"_Hear that? Someone must've had problems waking up to work," Odd commented, and she smiled. _

"_He'd better not be caught speeding, 'cause he'd lose not only time, but also money," she said. _

_But her cheery attitude evaporated the moment she saw the car. It was driving a crazy slalom from one side of the road to the other. The students started screaming in shock and running away; the car was going straight at them. Everything lasted only a few seconds. _

_Aelita remembered that after few more seconds she was pushed forward and to the left; she instinctively covered her face with her hands, fell to the hard surface of the sidewalk and rolled a few meters away. Then she heard a loud bang as if a bomb exploded, and she heard the noise of bending metal; into the air flew fragments of glass, each hitting the ground with a clang. The air filled with dust and smell __of burned gum.  
__She froze in the fetal position for a good moment. When she finally plucked up the courage to sit down on the sidewalk, she was horrified by what she saw.__  
__Merely a few steps from her was the wreck of the car which hit the brick wall. Its impact formed a gouge in the wall. Its front and right side were destroyed; the front cover folded as if it was made of paper. White material of airbags clattered from broken windows. But even worse was what was going on around the car; here and there lay and sat injured students; the conscious ones cried in pain; some were bleeding.__  
__"Hey, Aelita, are you okay?" she heard Ulrich's voice from the distance, as if it was coming from the other world. __  
__"Can you get up, Princess?" asked Odd.__  
__With the help of the two, Aelita got on her feet. It was when she could see what was actually going on. Jim and Mrs. Hertz tried to gain control over the chaos. Jim was walking to the injured students to check on them and reporting their state to Ms Hertz, who was leaning against the wall with a cell phone glued to her ear. Aelita noticed that few of non-injured students were standing under the wall and looking around in shock.__  
__She glanced at her friends and noticed somebody was missing. She took a desperate look in search of the one she talked to merely few minutes earlier. She turned to the street and noticed him, lying on the asphalt in a considerable distance from her. He laid face down to the ground with limbs turned in awkward positions. Shattered glasses laid next to him. __  
__"JEREMIE!" she shouted at him, but to her horror he did not move; he did not try to stand up. All she could do was stare helplessly at him, thrown to the ground like a doll, his hair being ruffled by the wind. She started to shake and tears began to stream slowly down her face. __  
__Then she heard Jim's shout at Ms Hertz and saw him running towards Jeremie. Jim examined him quickly and checked his pulse. __  
__"Suzanne! Belpois is in a really bad shape! Tell them to hurry up!"__  
__"Jeremie's... in really bad... shape..." she repeated to herself and closed her eyes. Her head started to spin as she heard the approaching sirens of ambulances and police cars.  
A few hours later Aelita, together with Odd, Ulrich and Yumi, was sitting on a couch in the recreation room. After the boys explained everything that happened to Yumi, silence fell between them. But, Aelita mused as she looked at her friends, what else should be said? Would Ulrich repeat "What an idiot", like he did numerous times over the course of the day? Because she was not quite sure who he had been referring to. She wanted to push that question for later. But honestly, how big were the chances she was wrong?_

_Suddenly a crowd of people entered and broke the silence of the room. They ran straight to the TV set. The atmosphere of excitement and tension could be felt. __  
__Someone picked the remote control and turned the TV on. A series of hushes ran across the crowd when the newsreader appeared on the screen. __  
__"A car accident occurred near the Kadic Academy today morning. A Peugeot, for reasons yet unknown, drove into a column of students, who were on their way to a field trip..." _

_After a short announcement, footage from the scene of the accident, which showed the remains of a car enclosed by police tape, was displayed. Several students let out a scream of shock in response to what they saw. __  
__"Unfortunately, the passenger of the car could not be saved. Nine children were reported injured, five of them together with the driver were taken to the hospital; four are in good condition with one in critical condition. Police began the investigation to determine the circumstances of the accident."__  
__The news of the driver's death could not do without comments among the thrilled audience gathered in the rec room. __  
__ The group exchanged meaningful glances. For a moment they considered turning the supercomputer back on and launching a return to the past. Now the painful realization that it would be no use hit them. They could not do anything – neither for the injured classmates, nor Jeremie. The situation was out of their control. Aelita in particular felt even more helpless than before. And she was almost ready to make the sacrifice of going back to the place which reminded her only of loss and pain... __  
__"One... critical condition..." Aelita heard Sissi say with disbelief in her voice.__  
__Her words made another rise of interest among the students. Some voices asked who did she mean, others replied by whispering Jeremie's name. __  
__"B-but who knows what w-would happen if-if Jeremie didn't-" muttered Jeanne. Some people turned to listen to her.__  
__"If he what?" a boy sitting close to her asked.__  
__"If h-he didn't push Aelita out of the way!" she answered. At the same time she fixed her sight on Aelita. "We saw it! Oh my God..." she added, as if she was afraid to say out loud anything else. __  
__But Aelita already knew what Jeanne was thinking. Aelita suddenly felt incredibly guilty, even though that was not Jeanne's intention. It was enough for her that Jeanne almost shouted out what Aelita was so unwilling to admit herself. The person who had pushed her out of the car's way... She immediately stood up from the couch.__  
__"What's going on, Aelita?" asked Yumi with concern.__  
__"I... I need to be by myself", Aelita replied and walked out of the crowd and to the door. Some of the kids called out to her, but she would not listen, nor turn around. All she wanted was to escape the curious sights and questions...  
_  
A shiver went down Aelita's spine when she felt a warm hand pressing her arm.  
"Aelita, dear," a female voice said softly.  
Aelita sighed heavily as she came back to reality from her memories. She quickly wiped the tears off her face with a sleeve and turned to face the woman, whom she knew as Mrs. Belpois, Jeremie's mother.  
Mrs. Belpois was reaching for a handkerchief once in a while, as she tried to regain composure; despite the fact that a faint smile lit her face. Her husband was doing all he could to comfort her. Never before did she see Jeremie's father, who appeared to her as usually energetic and optimistic, yet currently so serious and concerned.  
But there was something strange in Jeremie's parent's look, which gave Aelita the same anxious feeling as Jeanne's look she memorized a few moments ago. She started wondering; do they know or suspect anything?  
"We have to go", said Mrs. Belpois in such a tone that it was obvious she did not want to leave that place.

_Already?_ Some voice inside Aelita's head protested as well. However, she had no chance against stern expression on the doctor's face. She knew they were allowed to stay there not for too long.

"Let's go, then." Jeremie's father sighed and nodded meaningfully to the doctor who guided them again.  
Just before they left, all three of them turned to take the last look at Jeremie. But Aelita could not resist turning back all the way to the elevator; with her every step his room would be even further and eventually it would be lost from sight.  
_Why, Jeremie? Why did you do that?_ Now, after personal encounter with the state Jeremie was in, that question was attacking her conscience even harder.

Aelita was aware that Jeremie was ready for sacrifices in the name of fighting XANA. The top of it was the time when he wanted to improve his intelligence, which almost killed him. However, the current situation was even worse. It was real, irreversible; there was no XANA to put the blame on and it was impossible to return in time. Jeremie should have known that, she thought, so she could not understand why he put his life to a risk and went completely against his self-preservation instinct? Why didn't he escape? Did he think that the speeding car would not get in his way? Would he have avoided severe injuries and intensive care unit if she did not stand there? All that deliberation led Aelita to a simple conclusion. She led Jeremie to the edge of self-destruction.

Aelita spent the afternoon with her friends at Yumi's house. Taking advantage of a warm weather, they were sitting outside, on the terrace in the garden. There, surrounded by the soothing green of the plants and silence, she could rest after spending time in unfriendly, sterile hospital interior.  
Ulrich, Yumi and Odd were curious about Jeremie's state.  
"As far as I know, he has this and that broken, some internal issues, a concussion..." Aelita told them all she learned at the hospital. "But I heard that he's stabilized now, so… it's not that bad."  
"When we'll be able to see him?" Odd asked.  
"Not until he regains consciousness. I was lucky that they let me in. Jeremie's parents convinced the doctors I was family."  
Hearing that, they all smiled faintly at her.  
"Do the doctors know when he will wake up?" asked Yumi.  
"No. They said they did everything they could. Now we can only wait," Aelita answered.  
Their smiles faded.  
"That can mean anything," said Ulrich, as he leaned on the back of the rattan armchair.  
"Yeah. I wonder how his parents handle this," Yumi asked.  
"It's hard for them, especially for his mom, but they are incredibly strong. They don't stop being nice to me like they always did, although… I almost killed him!"

She muttered the last sentence, about to burst into tears. Odd tried to comfort her, but she pulled away.  
"It's... that..." She began to sob. "He lays there unconscious and so... fragile, you know. It looks so terrible... Just tell me, why did he do that to us, and to his parents? He must've known what would happen to him. Why didn't he run, too, then? I don't want any sacrifices for me anymore! It's enough that my father let himself be killed by XANA to save me!"  
As she was finished crying, she almost lay down in her armchair, tired and to appear apathetic. Her friends looked at her, dumbstruck, as if it was not Aelita who sat next to them. They never saw her in such state before.

Yumi came over to her and hugged her.  
"You can't blame yourself," she said slowly.  
"Yumi's right. The only person responsible for this is that idiot behind the wheel," butted in Ulrich, whose voice rose again when he mentioned the driver.  
"Besides, you know Jeremie! He would never forgive himself if anything bad happened to you", said Yumi. "He did what he thought was right."  
"I didn't ask him for it!" Aelita answered angrily. "He acts like my dad, but he's not! He has no right to try and be!"  
Yumi would never convince her this way. Aelita felt as if guilt was destroying her from the inside. Now she had no doubt that Jeremie was fighting for his life because of her. She could not be grateful for that if it was Yumi's point.  
Yumi must have realized that, because it took her a while before she spoke again.  
"Whatever you say. But you can't be angry at him like this. Because you may regret it."  
Aelita straightened up a bit. What did she mean by that?  
"I don't want to lose him," Aelita said quickly. She did not want to think of it even for a second.  
"We don't either," Ulrich said.  
"Who would ever understand Einstein," Odd concluded. "We have to think positive. You said he had the best treatment in all Ile-de-France. He will get out of it, you'll see. Lyoko Warriors never give up."  
Aelita could not resist a smile when she heard that. In an instant she felt a lot better. Her friends seemed relieved to see her cheered up a little bit. She wiped the tears which remained on her face.  
"Uh... how did it go? Do not despair about things you can't change?" Aelita recalled. "But... is there anything we can do, then?"  
"Let's do what Jeremie would like to do if he was with us," Yumi proposed.  
"Sounds like a good idea. But all I can think of is chess or Scrabble", Ulrich said.  
"I have both, but considering there's four of us, Scrabble sounds like a better option. You okay with that, Aelita?"  
Aelita nodded. "Yeah, but I don't feel like playing."  
"Well then, I'll go and get it." Yumi stood up and headed into the house.  
"Don't forget to bring the French version," Odd said in her direction. He turned to Aelita.  
"Oh come on Aelita, it won't be any fun without you!"  
"Give me a break," Aelita said, slightly irritated. "I'd rather watch today. I can be the judge and the dictionary."  
"As you wish, Princess."  
Aelita was glad Odd understood her. She felt she would not be any good in the game anyway. It was Jeremie who always inspired her to put killer 7-letter words and triple-scoring combos. Jeremie...  
She looked up in the clear blue sky and came back to the memory of his room in the hospital. She felt sad again as she realized something. The sky was blue, but Jeremie's blue eyes were closed.  
Eventually Yumi came back with the Scrabble set and they would play until it was late enough that Aelita, Ulrich and Odd had to go back to the dorm.

On their way from Yumi's house they stopped opposite to the wall where the accident took place.

"It's all cleaned up. It looks as if nothing really happened", said Odd with a hint of melancholy in his voice.

"Not entirely, someone put a light and a flower under the wall", noticed Ulrich.

Aelita took a quick glance at it from the other side of the road, but immediately looked away. The fresh trauma of seeing the place which brought back memories of pain, fear and eventually death was dangerously similar to the one she had a few months ago when they went to the factory to shut down Lyoko. The awareness of what happened there was too strong for her to tackle. Her imagination immediately added the wrecked car, her classmates' screams of pain, Jim's shouts and Jeremie's motionless body lying face down on the asphalt.

"Shall we go?" She got annoyed that they had to stay there long enough to call it all out of her memory right after few hours spend in relative peace.

"Yeah. Sorry, Princess", muttered Odd and, to Aelita's relief, they moved on quickly towards Kadic's main gate.


	2. Chapter 2

The Accident

Chapter 2

As days passed, Aelita's anger eased and she would miss Jeremie even more. His seat stayed unoccupied even after all other injured classmates came back to school and filled their empty seats in the classrooms. The class without Jeremie was still empty. The lessons looked a bit awkward without his usual activity. It bothered her as he always sat close to her: either next to or in front of her. She instinctively looked for him during meals as she tried to see his blond, uncombed hair in the crowd. Whenever she walked past his door on boys' floor, she would expect him to open the door and that she would meet his slightly absent gaze. Every footstep on the girls' floor corridor reminded her of him, when he ran to her room to share his newest idea or thought.

His parents called her every day to check on her and pass the news. At first she was happy that it was not worse with him at least, but after she hung up, she would be miserable again. There was little to no improvement, which worried her to the point that the darkest scenarios occupied her mind. When will he wake up? Will he ever wake up? Attempts to answer these questions ended up with her bursting to tears. Then she would usually run to Ulrich's and Odd's room, so that they would dissuade her from these thoughts.  
For the first time in her life she started wondering how her life would look like without him. She was under the impression they had known each other since forever. They used to spend so much time together that his presence was something as obvious as a sunrise each morning.  
She felt alone, although she had friends she could talk to and ask for help. Things were different about him. He was her very first and best friend since she made contact with the real world back in the past, when she was stuck on Lyoko; he always warned her about danger and helped her achieve her dreams. They had so many common interests that she was never bored whenever he was around. Only between them existed that unexplainable bond, understanding without words which was giving her wings.  
She tried to repeat herself very often that he could not leave her alone; it'd be too soon for that, he did not deserve it. They had so many issues to talk about, things to do together. They still had so much to tell to each other, things she was so afraid to admit. She could not stand the thought that she would possibly never have the chance to tell.

Another monotonous day at school passed. Aelita entered her room and closed the door. With a sigh of relief she dropped her bag to the floor. Under normal circumstances she would start doing her homework. Instead she sat on the bed, her back against the cold wall, and checked the time. Jeremie's parents were to call soon.  
She felt very tired, but she already knew that she would not fall asleep even if she really wanted to. Tension and nervousness caused by awaiting the call would not let her. All she could do was stare at the ceiling and wait for the news – she eventually did not care whether good or not, she just did not want to live in doubt and hesitation.  
She dreamt of seeing Jeremie again. She closed her eyes and tried to recall the ward he was in, his room, his bed...  
Soon she realized that she stood in the middle of the corridor at the hospital. People, who were reduced to grey, ghost-like shapes, moved all around her and seemed to completely ignore her presence. Aelita walked confidently towards the intensive care unit and did not need anyone's permission to enter. In contradiction to the corridor she left behind, it was exceptionally silent and peaceful in there. She moved slowly near the glass windows. The rooms reminded her of glass cubes, in which lay the patients, surrounded by ghost-like personnel and machines.  
After a moment she found her destination and looked inside. Jeremie's room was empty except for the boy in question himself. She thought of it a little and she stood on the other side of the glass wall, right next to his bed.  
She sat on the edge of the bed to take a closer look at him. He looked exactly like she imagined. With his pale face and a faint smile, he resembled a porcelain doll, which looked fragile and delicate, but also tempted to touch it.  
She could not resist reaching her hand towards him. But she had hardly touched his face when his blue eyes looked up at her.  
"Aelita...?" he muttered with exactly the same disbelief as when she met him in the morning, sleeping on his keyboard.  
"Yes, Jeremie, it's me!" she replied quickly, not taking her hand back. His smile widened when she gently stroked his hair.  
"Did you come... to take me?" he asked quietly.  
"No... I came to visit you, not to take you with me," she answered, unwilling to wonder what Jeremie's question meant. Jeremie looked both relieved and happy to hear her response.  
"Please don't leave me, not yet," he begged.  
"Don't worry, you'll never be alone," she assured him. She lost the track of time while she was sitting there and watching over him.  
Suddenly, in the corner of her eye she noticed a shadow, crawling on the wall. She looked around to find out that the shadow seemed to move even closer to them. Here and there she noticed its moving fragments. Some of them, which resembled running paws and a fluffy tail, made her alarmingly nervous.  
Jeremie seemed to notice her fears.  
"Whatever it is, Aelita, don't show fear. Please stay with me," he whispered.  
Then, all of a sudden he started to have difficulty breathing, as he desperately tried to catch a breath. The machines which monitored his life functions went totally crazy.  
"What's going on? Jeremie!" Aelita got scared. She tried to scream, call for help, but a hoarse whisper was all she could let out of her throat.  
Then she noticed a group of doctors and nurses hurrying into the room. As the door opened, the room was filled with footsteps and quick, short instructions. Aelita instinctively backed off under the wall and with rising horror, she observed as the staff hurried to help the patient. She was under an impression that she landed in the middle of some medical drama and somebody slowed the action.  
That was when she saw a shadow in the form of a wolf, sitting on the opposite wall. It seemed to observe the situation, awaiting something. That sight caused Aelita to lean against the wall in attempt to distance herself from it. Turning her sight from the shadow, she focused more on what was happening around Jeremie's bed.  
The crisis was just temporary; the initial tension seemed to vanish from the staff's faces as the vitals stabilized.  
Aelita looked at the wall again, but to her horror the shape of a wolf still sat there. Eventually, it rose to its four paws and shook its tail. She let out a silent scream when it jumped off the wall and formed a life-size wolf created of thick, grey smoke.  
"Don't... get any closer..." muttered Aelita, but the wolf would not listen. It suddenly reappeared on the bed and split in two separate clouds of smoke-like substance, which started to attack unconscious Jeremie through his nose and ears. When the smoke disappeared as it invaded Jeremie's body, the various sounds of the machinery went silent and a single, continuous signal rang.  
"He's going down!" the shout of the doctor echoed around Aelita.  
The wonder-struck personnel were called back into the room; in the meantime, one of the nurses sealed the verticals, isolating the room from the corridor, while two other people prepared the cardiac unit. Aelita observed as the personnel fought for Jeremie's life.  
With no results...  
Aelita sat on the ground, her ears hurt from the deafening squeak. She curled up in despair, sure that all she could do was watch him die...  
_Lyoko Warriors never give up._  
She realized there still was a light of hope. If she gave up right now because of her childish fear of wolves, she would let Jeremie down.  
She slowly rose to her feet and straightened up. Not quite sure of what she was doing, she stretched her arms wide. She felt a breeze, blowing around her.  
"HE'S MIINE! GO AWAY!" she shouted sharply. Her words echoed once again throughout the room.  
The wind kept blowing even stronger and faster and she almost collapsed due to its impact. Eventually the current of air lifted her above the ground. She felt much more confident as this feeling resembled her rising to a platform in a tower, rise for victory. Then the room filled with a flash of bright light...  
When Aelita fell to the ground, the squeak did not stop, but she could feel the wind. The personnel did not move as if it was frozen in time. Then she saw streams of smoke coming out of Jeremie's ears and nose. Taking the shape of a wolf, it dissolved in the air.  
The room moved again. One of the doctors was about to press the electrodes against Jeremie's chest when the squeak turned into a series of beeps and the monitor drew a regular graph on the screen. He put the electrodes down and sighed with relief. Tension left the rest of the rescuing personnel; the nurses even smiled.  
Aelita woke up and let out a loud, muffled scream. It was already dark outside, so she assumed she must have slept for quite long. She was shaking like she just ran a kilometer and tried to calm down by reasoning that it was just a dream with no relation to the reality. But, how could she be sure about that? If there was not enough terrible visions in one dream, a wolf appeared, which made her even more worried.  
She had to be sure about what happened. It was not easy for her to forget the previous dreams, which turned out to be painfully real.  
As if in response to her confusion, her telephone rang. She picked it up without even looking at the number.  
"Good aft... I'm sorry, good evening, Mrs. Belpois. Any news?"  
Her heart was pounding as if it was about to jump off her chest. Those few seconds between her question and an answer stretched into infinity.  
"Hello, Aelita. Anything wrong, dear?" she heard a concern in Jeremie's mom's voice.  
"No... I just woke up", Aelita replied. "How is he?"  
"Oh, he's... he's okay", said Mrs. Belpois with a noticeable nervousness, which just encouraged Aelita to ask more questions. After her dream a short "he's okay" was certainly not enough for her.  
"No problems? Really?" she tried.  
"Of course not, dear", Mrs. Belpois assured her. "Don't worry about him, he's-he's so brave, you know him..." she added. Her voice shook noticeably.  
"Yes," said Aelita, who came to the conclusion that even if Jeremie's mother knew any worrying details, she would not share them with her anyway.  
"Thank you so much."  
"You welcome, Aelita," replied Mrs Belpois. "Goodnight, sleep well."  
Aelita hung up and stared at the ceiling again. She felt- no, she knew it – that something must have happened, but the danger was over. She closed her eyes, as she tried to recall more details from her dream. There were only single words and scenes left in her memory. She remembered one in particular. Jeremie's mine and no one will take him away from me, she thought. For the first time in a long time she felt so calm.

The next day Aelita would recall the parts of the dream she still remembered, or rather the ones she wanted to remember – the conversation between her and Jeremie and her triumph over the dark, evil wolf. She stuck to these which were giving her blissful solace and light of hope. They occupied her mind in the form of short movies, played repeatedly inside her mind. Often she drifted into her little world of memories far enough to ignore everything what was going on around her. Over the days which passed since the accident Odd and Ulrich got used to the ritual of waking her up in the middle of the class whenever she was being asked by the teachers, or at the end, right before the bell was about to ring so that she had time to collect her stuff. However, in contradiction to the previous situations when Aelita could not stop thinking of her terrible experiences and she was even grateful for her friends to wake her up, she did not want to be brought back to reality from those thoughts, which she actually enjoyed. Once they asked her what made her so happy, but as she would rather keep the dream to herself, she gave them a simple "I think everything will be okay" in response. They were happy to hear her saying that with conviction and see her having so much hope. Indeed she had it more than ever before.

After dinner that day, Aelita said goodbye to Odd and Ulrich and headed towards her floor.

„Hey, Aelita!" Suddenly, she heard a familiar voice coming from behind her.

She turned around and saw William, who was approaching her, holding something in his hand.

"It's yours, isn't it?" William asked as he walked closer upstairs and showed her the item. It turned out to be her cell phone. "You left it on the table in the cafeteria", he explained.

"Thanks." Aelita said silently, then took the phone and dropped it into the pocket. She realized that without it, Jeremie's parents would not be able to contact her. "Thanks a lot", she repeated and turned to the girls' floor corridor. She expected William to walk away and go downstairs to boys' floor. To her surprise, however, William followed her.

"Wait, can we talk?" he asked as they both walked to the door of Aelita's room.

"Of course," Aelita replied. Opposed to Ulrich or Yumi, her and William's mutual relation was more than correct. Ever since he was freed form Xana he'd come and talk to her or Jeremie from time to time. However this time William's rather serious tone gave Aelita an impression that they were not going to just have a joyful chat. She became curious what exactly William wanted to discuss with her.

As they both arrived at her door, Aelita fumbled in her other pocket in search of the key, then tried to open the door, but to her surprise, had difficulties opening the lock. She tried to turn the key, but it would not move a millimeter. William sighed.

"May I?", he said. Aelita gave up fighting with the lock and took a step backwards from the door. Mumbling something about weird locks, William turned the key and opened the door without difficulties.

"I'm worried about you," he confessed as he let Aelita into the room. "I don't take part in your Anonymous Lyoko Warrior meetings, but I want to know how you're doing."

Aelita could not resist smiling at the "Anonymous Lyoko Warrior" phrase. "I wouldn't mind you hanging out with us sometimes," she said as she sat down on her bed.

"I'd rather not. But that's not what I wanted to talk about." William closed the door and leaned his back against it. "You helped me find my place in that school again. Now let me help you."

"I really can handle this situation now, William," she said, surprised. Why William became so concerned about her now and not when she was in a really bad mental condition? "Jeremie's still in the hospital and… I can't do anything about it. Just wait until he gets out. I-I'm okay with it already."

"Yeah, right." William shook his black hair. He did not sound too convinced, though. "I bet you wondered why Jeremie did what he did."

Aelita gave him another confused look. She did not expect him to bring up the matter she discussed only with her closest friends and still did not know what to think of yet.

"I-I might know, but I'm not sure. See? Even after everything we've gone through together, he's still a mystery… even to me."

"You wanna know what I think?" William asked. Aelita nodded in anticipation.

"He desperately wanted to tell you something. Something very important."

"And what do you think it was?" she asked after a moment of awkward silence. She had enough of his weird hints.

"How should I know? Ask _him_," William said.

Aelita was even more confused. She immediately recalled her recent dream; the expression of emotions she kept only to herself, the ones she was afraid to say out loud. Her cheeks reddened, her hands started to shake. To the contrary, William looked as if the signs of emotions which started to show up on her did not bother him at all. He stood under the door with his hands in his pockets and looked at her, so annoyingly calm.

She stood up and said angrily, "That's none of your business!"

"Yes it is. I want to give you friendly advice," he replied calmly and smiled. "I know you nerds are not the first in line to talk about their emotions. But you have to talk to Jeremie from the heart."

William stepped from the door, pulled his hands out of the pockets and came closer to angry and confused Aelita. He looked down at her for a moment. "Think of it, Aelita. Please don't do this to yourself. You've already gone through a lot. Your father sacrificed himself for you. Don't waste the chance he gave you, the chance to be happy."

Aelita opened her mouth but found no words to reply to William. She just let his words slowly sink into her consciousness. She was still blushing and her face was tense. Never before did she feel so exposed, so brutally confronted about what had been wandering in her mind since the accident.

"Probably you wonder why I told you all of this and not the others. I don't want to judge them. Maybe they thought you're smart enough to figure it out by yourself. But, you see, sometimes someone has to give you a nudge."

Perhaps William was right and someone had to make that honest conversation. What was making Aelita feel even weirder was that she expected anyone to do that but him.

"Since when you've become so wise?" Aelita asked.

"Life experience. I realized a lot after my, uh, comeback."

"Oh, and that gives you the right to teach people?"

"If there's anything I can do for them. Come on, cool it. You'll thank me for that, you'll see," William said and put his hand on the doorknob. "Okay, I'm outta here, I have my own things to do. Good luck, sister." He smiled at her and left the room, quickly disappearing from Aelita's sight. The door closed, but Aelita stood and stared at them, puzzled.

"Sister?" she repeated her unexpected new nickname with disbelief as she eventually sat down on the chair by her desk. She had some homework to do for the next day of course, but she needed to collect her thoughts first.

_What a nerve_, she snorted, although she believed that William had good intentions. But did he really help her as he intended? Deep down she knew he did not tell her anything revealing. She would have to confront Jeremie about his behavior at some point anyway. However, she was nervous again when she considered its meaning underneath. William seemed to trust that she would eventually find courage to ask Jeremie about it. She realized that if William was right, then Jeremie would be ready to harm himself again. She saw no other solution than to fix him, fight for him, just like she did in the dream she had last night, or else after coming back Jeremie would again fall into the circle of self-destruction. Aelita knew she could not let him do that if she did not want to lose him...


	3. Chapter 3

The Accident Chapter 3

"Hey, guys!" Aelita shouted when she ran hastily into the cafeteria during lunch time, waving with her cell phone.  
Odd, Yumi and Ulrich had already started eating their meals. Aelita was too excited to even think about eating at that moment. She did not care that people at the cafeteria were staring at her in confusion.  
"What happened?" Yumi asked immediately. Aelita did not even take her seat, but merely leaned on the edge of the table.  
"Guess what! Jeremie's woken up! His parents just called me!" she gasped.  
She saw her friends' faces lit up with wide smiles as they processed this information.  
"Oh God, that's awesome!" Yumi exclaimed and hugged Aelita above the table.

Aelita finally settled down and started to cry and it was the cry of pure happiness. Odd and Ulrich did not hide their happiness, either.  
"So Aelita, when will we be able to pay him a visit?" Odd asked.  
"Well... the access to him is still limited. But I'm going to see him tomorrow anyway!" she said, still shaking from emotion.  
"Lucky you", Odd said, "just don't forget to greet him for us!"  
"Of course, of course," Aelita replied. "Oh my God, I already can't wait."  
"And what are we supposed to say?" Ulrich said.  
Their table caught the attention of other students, some of them came over to them and asked about the cause of their excitement. One of them was Sissi, who also burst into tears when she found out. Soon, it appeared as if Aelita had infected the entire cafeteria with her joy. It was uplifting to see that although several days passed since the accident, people, most of them being complete strangers, still had the most injured in their hearts and thoughts.

Twenty four hours later, Aelita was leaving school grounds to meet Jeremie's parents at the gate. She hadn't been in such a good mood for ages. She was so full of energy that she pranced joyfully all the way to the gate, where Jeremie's parents waited for her in the car. Soon they arrived at the hospital.

Aelita could not take away her sight off Jeremie, who looked noticeably better. His unbroken arm was placed on his chest as if he had laid it there by himself. His face was turned towards the door as if he already looked in that direction.  
When they entered the room, he reacted immediately. He opened his eyes and smiled. Aelita was touched by his look, she hardly restrained tears.  
"Hi, son," Mr. Belpois said quietly when they came closer to his bed.  
With his eyes half opened Jeremie took a look at them.  
"Hi Mom, hi Dad..." he muttered in a sleepy voice as he recognized his parents.  
He opened his eyes wider as he looked in Aelita's direction.  
"Oh hi, Aelita! Mom, please don't say I'm making things up again..."  
"Don't worry, painkillers work on him like that," Mrs. Belpois assured Aelita. They both laughed.  
"I'm here, stupid!" said Aelita, laughing in spite of tears that streamed down her cheeks.  
"Glasses...?" muttered Jeremie. He stretched out his arm as if he was looking for something. Aelita caught his hand in the air. Meanwhile Mrs. Belpois placed the glasses on Jeremie's face.  
"Thanks, Mom. Hi, Aelita", he greeted her, smiling widely.  
Aelita felt her cheeks reddened on the realization that they never held each other's hands in the presence of his parents. Thankfully it looked like Jeremie did not care about that. He looked very happy to be able to hold her hand.  
"We'll leave you two alone as we step out for a while, okay?" Mrs. Belpois whispered to Aelita after a short chat. Soon, Aelita watched as Mrs. Belpois and her husband left the room.  
"Uh... how do you feel?" It was the only question that came to her mind when they were left alone.  
"Good. The painkillers work... nothing to worry about there," he answered. _So like him_, she thought. "I'm so glad to see you unharmed. That car, you know, it was going straight at you..."  
"Please don't think about that for now", she protested and squeezed his hand tight. She was mad at him for his decision beyond his realization, but she would rather not remind it to him, taking his state into account.  
"How are the others doing?" Jeremie's question woke her up from her reflective mood.  
"They're worried about you, but fine. I almost forgot to say: they greet you warmly," she said.  
"Tell them that I can't wait to see them again."  
"I sure will," she answered.  
She felt as if she came back to life. That feeling kept her warm and would not let her stop smiling. She could not believe it! She could talk with him, hold his hand... She would never expect that such little things could bring her so much happiness. She rose her sight to the window and noticed Jeremie's parents, who were standing outside. She was pretty sure that they had been observing them for some time. She noticed that they came back to being their usual selves. They both smiled and again looked like the happy parents Aelita had always known.

The saddest part for her was leaving Jeremie that day. She swore she would sit with him as much as she could, until he stood up and left the hospital on his own.

**Some weeks later**

It's been almost a week since Jeremie came back to school, but he still did not catch up with all the schoolwork. Aelita had to admit there was quite a lot of it, even for him, who never had problems at school. In addition, however, he still did not fully recover. He was getting tired much faster than he used to and therefore was forced to slow down.

Aelita helped him as much as she could. He always was too stubborn to ask for help, so the help had to come to him instead. Thankfully Aelita was already immune to Jeremie's explanations that he could manage on his own and she should have focused on her own work instead of wasting time supervising him. But she did not want to leave him; her will was to spend as much time with him as possible. She still remembered advice William gave her a few weeks ago. Since then she had plenty of time to think William's words over; she also discussed her concerns with Yumi, though not mentioning who sowed them. Just like William expected, she was given even more support from Yumi. Aelita was ready to go for it, just had to find the right time.

One afternoon Aelita was prancing joyfully along the corridor towards Jeremie's room, exactly for the purpose of checking how he handled catching up with his delayed homework. She knocked on the door, but no response came from the inside. She tapped the handle to find out that the door was not locked. She edged herself in the room and closed the door with one strong pull.  
The room was empty; Aelita concluded that she must have missed Jeremie. She decided to wait for him. She sat on his chair and spun slowly around, glancing at the mess. On the bed, the most recent issues of computer magazines and notes lay. On his computer laid an opened book. It was a mess, but a lovely one.  
She turned to the computer screen. The desktop was clean, but Aelita noticed several minimized windows on the taskbar. She found that quite unusual, as minimizing the programs never was Jeremie's habit. An icon of a video player caught her attention. The file was described as _myjournal234_. Intrigued, she decided to maximize the window. What she saw in the window was the top of Jeremie's head. She knew she perhaps shouldn't watch that, but the curiosity took over. Besides, she had previous bad experience with Jeremie's video journal. She clicked Play button. The image moved as Jeremie tried to adjust the camera. When his face could be seen in the frame, he began to speak.  
_"I stopped recording a video journal a long time ago. Ever since the Lyoko adventure was over, I did not feel the urge to do that. Nothing in particular happened since then, just normal school life, weekends, nothing special. But today I feel like I have to spit something out. I had an accident a few weeks ago...  
...I hardly remember what happened. Just a car, which was running straight at us. Then the decision came. I made it in a split of a second... like beyond conscience. It was more like an instinct perhaps. What happened afterwards is a black hole. I woke up in the hospital and was told that I'd been in a coma for over a week. It's just crazy to think that I've been unconscious for so long. Well, maybe not completely.  
I'm sure I had some kind of a dream or a vision during that period. Today it's a very vague memory. I recall talking to someone. It must've been a woman, because she had so calm voice. Then something heavy jumped on the top of me and I started to suffocate.  
I was falling into darkness. I was so afraid. Afraid that it was all over for me. But then I saw a flash of light in the darkness and I desperately tried to get closer to it. I made it. The light saved me. I felt peace.  
Since then I wondered what that could possibly be. At first I thought it was Mom who spoke. But the other day she brought Aelita to the hospital with her and then I was sure. That voice in my dream... it was Aelita's voice. _

_ Shortly after I left the hospital I started collecting information about dreams. I really was curious what exactly I dreamt of. And based on what I found I drew a conclusion. I was in a state of clinical death. But it was unexplainable for me to survive my own death. It must have been some sort of miracle. No, it escapes any attempt to describe it. It was a victory... my victory... and her. I... I couldn't make it without her. She somehow saved me. She didn't want me to follow in her father's footsteps. He died without saying goodbye and left her only sadness and emptiness. I don't want her to suffer anymore."_  
He leaned against the back of his chair and touched his once broken arm.  
_"...I did a crazy thing. A stupid thing. But I know I had to do it. It didn't turn out the way I'd want it to, though, but... I don't regret any single thing I did for her. Because, if not that... would she still be there?"_  
As the recording ended, Aelita felt her breathe speed up and her eyes wet. She could not believe in what she just heard. How was it possible for them to have so similar dreams? Jeremie really balanced on the line between life and death that day, and she somehow made him come back to life.  
A realization hit her. He managed to get over his injuries physically, but deep down he still was broken. She could see it in his eyes, how he was shaking whenever he mentioned her. She could hear it in his voice, whenever he stumbled upon his own words. He seemed so confused and lost. She immediately knew she could not hesitate and wait any longer.

Then she heard footsteps outside, getting even closer to the room. Certain sounds echoing from behind the door indicated clearly who was coming. Aelita minimized the window quickly and quickly trying to hide her emotions, turned on the chair towards the door. It opened and in came Jeremie. He looked quite normal, except for his leg, which still had not heal properly and he had to use a cane to support himself during walking.  
"Hi Aelita, what's up?" he asked in a surprised, but unenthusiastic tone. "Did you wait long for me?"

"Not much, I just came in," Aelita replied in the most casual tone she could produce. "I wanted to check how you're doing. I see that you did quite a lot of Maths and Physics."

"Yeah, I'm almost done with these. Thankfully Mrs Meyer let me just write the test on quadratic functions and not bother about the homework. But I did it anyway." Aelita frowned mentally at his attempt to work at full speed. "Then I have to write that paper for French for tomorrow, but I'm totally out of ideas… And you? Have you done it yet?"

_He'__ll never change_, Aelita thought. "In fact, not a single sentence. But I have an idea, how about taking a walk in the park? Some fresh air will help both of us clear our minds. You okay with that?" she proposed.

Jeremie hesitated; Aelita realized that perhaps it was not a good idea since he had trouble walking. But she knew from experience that contact with nature worked on Jeremie like a charm.

"Hmm… Sure, why not?" he replied. "You know, the doctor said I need to take walks from time to time, to make my muscles stronger."

"Great, let's go then." Aelita brightened up and stood up vigorously from the chair.

They went out of the room and slowly walked towards the park in the campus.

Due to Jeremie's condition it took them some time before they walked downstairs and made it outside. The weather was sunny, but a cool breeze reminded Aelita that she underestimated the temperature. However, she did not complain. Neither did Jeremie, but he rarely complained, even now, when he had to take his every step carefully. Aelita had crisis of conscience, noticing that she could have spared him that extra effort. But he already agreed on their little trip. _He makes sacrifices even now_, Aelita realized.

They walked past the stadium where some kids were playing basketball and took a turn between the trees and into a long alley.

"You remember? We used to walk there and you would show me the wonders of changing nature," she said.

"Of course I do, it wasn't that long ago after all," he replied.

She noticed that Jeremie's face changed when she reminded him of times which were long gone; times before she regained her earthly memories and he was her guide through the marvels of earthly life. Just like back then, he smiled and his blue eyes were not so watery, so sad and tired. He was regaining strength every day since the accident, but Aelita had an impression as if in a few moments he was completely healed.

"These were fun times. I really liked these trips," Aelita sighed as she felt slightly nostalgic. At the same time she wanted Jeremie to stay in his high spirits.

"Yeah, me too," he said. "In fact, we still can do it. Do you hear that bird chirping? I'm pretty sure it's a blackbird."

They walked for a while in silence, listening to a bird's song coming from somewhere above them. Jeremie stopped at the end of the alley they were walking and took her by her arm, making her stop too. Jeremie focused on the bird's song and nodded. "Yes, it is a blackbird," he said, very content.

"What a lovely song," Aelita admitted. Then she noticed that Jeremie's face looked tired again.

"Can we sit down? I think I could use some rest," he admitted. Aelita nodded in agreement and with her support he came over and sat down on the bench. Jeremie leaned the cane against the bench and straightened up his legs. Aelita sat next to him.

"Does it hurt a lot?" she asked with concern.

"No, it's just tired," Jeremie answered. However, Aelita could see that he frowned a little, then leaned on the bench and started to breathe slowly with his eyes closed. It was quite obvious for her that he was in pain.

"Maybe we shouldn't have gone that far," she said, feeling badly about dragging him out of the dorm.

"It's really no big deal," he tried to convince her, with no result.

"I don't want you to feel pain, Jeremie," she said quietly.

"It won't hurt for long, it'll heal soon-"

"It hurts to see you like that! " Aelita interrupted him. "It hurt when you lay unconscious on the street, then in the hospital… Now ever since you came back, I see that your every step is a great effort. I don't want you to suffer anymore."

"I… I didn't want it to end up like this," Jeremie said. "I-I know it was stupid, but I couldn't stand there and do nothing! It-it was like an instinct, I can't explain it, I'd really love to, but… I can't..." He struggled, stumbling upon his words. He spoke fast, as if he was afraid she would interrupt him again. She already knew it all from the recording, but she listened anyway. "Aelita, I know one thing for sure. I did not want you to crash with this car… at any cost."

"But you almost killed yourself trying to save me!" she said, more angrily than she intended.

"Aelita, I-" he wanted to explain himself again, but Aelita did not let him.

"No, listen. Some sort of unexplainable miracle saved you this time, but… what if you had less luck?"

Jeremie glanced at her, then looked downcast. He looked as if he was prepared to be punished. He seemed to wait for Aelita to shout at him and release her anger.

Noticing that, she moved closer to him and took his hand in hope that he would look at her. It was not until she twisted her head in his direction when he dared to do so. He was quite confused when he realized she was not going to be mad at him.

"Jeremie, I really appreciate all you've done for me. But I don't want you to risk your life in such a stupid way. For me, your life is priceless," she said calmly.

She embraced his arm and leaned her head on his shoulder. A single tear streamed down her face.

"I can't describe how happy I am that you're here with me, because just as well you would not be there. Please, Jeremie. Never hurt me like this again," she said in a shaky voice and started to sob.

Jeremie sat still as he let her calm down. Finally, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. Aelita was trembling in his embrace; not only because of emotions, but also due to not-so-warm weather, which she became aware of when warmth of Jeremie's body surrounded her.

She was not the only one. Aelita noticed that Jeremie was trembling as well; his breath, which she was able to hear clearly as her head rested on his chest, was irregular.

"I'm sorry, Aelita. I… just wanted to do good," he whispered.

"I know," she assured him as she pulled away. "I know you always want the best for me. But this time you just… scared me to death. You can't imagine how afraid I was that I could lose you. That you would never wake up and leave me just like my father did, without saying goodbye…" Fearing that she would break down again, she put her hands in Jeremie's.

"I'm really sorry. I promise to never let you down again," he said, stroking her hands with his thin fingers. "But I also will never give up on protecting you..."

He fell silent; he squeezed her hands tight, as if he did not want her to run away from him. Through his shaky grip Aelita could feel that emotions were boiling inside him.

"Jeremie?" she called out to him softly. At the same time she felt heat rising to her wet and reddened cheeks and her pulse speed up. "Is there anything you want to tell me?"

Jeremie's blond fringe trembled as he fixed his gaze on her again. Suddenly, his glassy eyes blazed with happiness and a smile lit his face.

"Yes, Aelita," he sighed, "I want you to know that… you are important… very important to me. Even more than I thought you were before."

Aelita felt she was about to stop breathing when suddenly the distance between her face and Jeremie's suddenly became even smaller. Jeremie lowered his voice to a soft almost-whisper.

"I survived the darkest moments of my life thanks to you. Because you were the light that showed me the way. I don't want it to fade. It keeps me alive…"

He let out a single sob, but did not cry. His breath was deep, as if he just got rid of a weight that kept on choking him.

Aelita was speechless. She had not seen him so joyful and relieved for a long time. But she was relieved and happy, too.

She lay her hands on his shoulders. Jeremie's eyes widened, seemingly surprised and scared by her sudden reaction, but instead of pulling him closer, she forced him to turn and lean the rest of his body against her chest. Jeremie hesitantly did so, he also lay his weaker leg on the bench. Then, Aelita embraced Jeremie's head and pulled it closer. He leaned back and their eyes met.

"Don't worry. After all, you mean just as much to me, Jeremie," she assured him, at the same time caressing his face with her hand. She gently stroked his jaw and scratched his ear. Jeremie closed his eyes and smiled, totally submitting himself to her touch.

She carefully rested her cheek on Jeremie's hair.

"How is your leg now?" she asked with concern.

"Better," he muttered shyly in response.

Perhaps under other circumstances he would demand that they come back to the dorm at that point, but to Aelita's delight he preferred to stay in her arms. He looked as if he was about to fall asleep, he lay so peaceful and relaxed.

_Rest, Jeremie, you really need it_, she thought.

The surroundings perfectly matched their peaceful states of mind. The sun was still shining and the park was silent, except for the song of a blackbird chirping somewhere high up on the tree and rustling leaves.

As they sat like that on the bench together, Aelita thought how paradoxical the situation was; one of the most dramatic and fearful events of her life led to its happiest moment. She smiled as she thought that it was going to be merely a beginning of a wonderful stage in their lives. She realized that although they knew each other so well, they still had a lot to learn about their feelings and needs. However she believed that now, when they finally spit out everything that was troubling them, things finally would fall into their place.

**A/N:** Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed my story.

Also, I noticed that some of you put this story into Story Alert. I just wanted to add that it is COMPLETE and I don't plan on making any more chapters. However, if you have any thoughts/reservations about this story, don't hesitate to PM me. :)


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